Last week, the Georgia Department of Labor reported a record number of 240,604 employed residents in the Three Rivers Region for March.

At the same time, unemployment fell and claims were also down in the region for the month. The Three Rivers Region includes Troup, Carroll, Coweta, Heard, Butts, Lamar, Meriwether, Pike, Spalding and Upson Counties.

“It’s good to see such a strong report in March,” Georgia Labor Commissioner Mark Butler said.

“So many of our local communities are trending in the right direction in terms of job creation and hiring. And, we are even seeing records in many places.”

LaGrange alone has added hundreds of new jobs this year, including the roughly 600 new employees hired by Great Wolf Lodge, who do not show up on the March report.

“Our local economy is thriving, and the proof of that are these great employment numbers,” LaGrange Mayor Jim Thornton said. “Local businesses are doing well, and that success translates into good jobs for our residents. I’m very happy with these trends.”

Three Rivers Georgia added 631 employed residents for the month and 7,288 over the past year. In Georgia, only four regions added more than 1,000 employed residents. 

“We saw over 600 individuals actually gain employment during the month of March, which by the way brings the total number of individuals employed in the Three Rivers Region to an all-time high, so we set a record for the month of March in the Three Rivers Region for the total number of individuals employed,” Butler said. “We also saw initial claims for unemployment go down during the month of March, and we are showing fewer claims this year than we saw the same time last year.”

The region ended March with a labor force of 250,765. According to GDOL, that number is down 261 over the month. However, it has risen 5,283 over the past 12 months.

The jobless rate in the region fell to 4.1 percent, a drop of .3 percent. In March 2017, the jobless rate was 5 percent. In the Three Rivers region, initial claims for unemployment were down about 14 percent for the month and down about 9 percent for the year.